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Planning board outlines moratorium and subcommittee to update zoning ordinances for large energy‑or water‑intensive projects
Summary
Following national interest in data centers and local concerns about resource‑intensive developments, Nottingham’s planning board described a temporary moratorium and an active subcommittee to draft zoning ordinance updates aimed at protecting water and electrical resources and addressing noise and other impacts.
At the end of its July 8 meeting the Nottingham Planning Board reviewed work by a subcommittee tasked with drafting zoning and ordinance updates to address large, resource‑intensive developments. The board has legally noticed a temporary moratorium and has sent a warrant to the town; the select board will schedule a special town meeting within statutory timelines to consider formal adoption.
The chair said the board intends the moratorium and the zoning work to be broader than data centers, covering any use that might withdraw large amounts of groundwater, use large electrical loads, or generate noise and vibrations. The board’s subcommittee will prioritize zoning ordinance changes first — because those must move through the town’s zoning season — and will also develop complementary regulation changes that the planning board can adopt with public hearings.
Multiple residents urged the board to get the balance right between protecting town resources and allowing businesses that properly mitigate impacts. Subcommittee chair and planning board member reported the group is meeting regularly and has been drawing on examples from other communities and resources from the New Hampshire Municipal Association. The board also noted a PREPA grant award that will fund stormwater regulation updates and other zoning work starting in the fall.
The board intends to present proposed ordinance changes to the town and to the joint meeting of regulatory bodies in late summer; the moratorium’s legal notice starts a 120‑day window if select board scheduling permits, and, if adopted, would trigger a 12‑month moratorium window while ordinance changes are developed.
